Loading, please wait...
LOT 2071
Viking Silver Stamped Broad Axe Pendant
CIRCA 9TH-11TH CENTURY A.D.
2 in. (10.71 grams, 52.11 mm).
Wire hoop; free-running triangular pendant decorated with two bands of stamped opposed pellet-in-triangle motifs to each face. [No Reserve]
ProvenanceFrom the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s.
LiteratureCf. Fuglesang, S.H., Viking and medieval amulets in Scandinavia in Fornvännen, Journal of Swedish Antiquarian Research, 1989, no.84, pp.15-27.
CONDITIONTimeLine Auctions follows a vetting process to ensure the authenticity and legality of all items, reinforcing our commitment to integrity and responsible trading. Each antiquity, antique, and coin lot undergoes thorough examination by a vetting committee of at least ten external specialists, professional trade association members, scientists, and archaeologists: Our Vetting Process
AUCTIONS:
TimeLine is a leading auction house specialising in antiquities, ancient art, collectables, natural history, coins, medals, and books. Our auctions offer museums, collectors, historians, and enthusiasts the opportunity to acquire unique and historically significant pieces.
-
Pre-Viking Gold Aroma Bucket Pendant
Circa 4th-7th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £1,430
Miniature drum-shaped vessel covered in filigree bobbles with strap handle. 0.78 grams, 13.52 mm
Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s. Westminster collection, central London, UK.
Pendants in the form of miniature buckets have been found in a number of pagan Anglo-Saxon and Viking contexts and are generally made of bronze or iron, with gold examples being rare; three gold examples were found with the hoard from Hoen, Norway. Bronze bucket amulets have been found at Driffield in Yorkshire, and Vimose bog in Denmark, among other places. In form they represent wooden buckets bound with bronze or iron bands which have been found in Anglo-Saxon and Viking graves and are believed to have held mead or ale and were used to replenish the cups from which warriors drank. As amulets they probably represent the ecstatic power of alcoholic drink and the role of women as the dispensers of these precious beverages. -
Viking Age Bronze Tweezers
Circa 9th-10th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £111
With broad arms and rounded finials; incised ring-and-dot detailing. 4.58 grams, 44 mm
Private collection formed in Europe in the 1980s. Westminster collection, central London, UK. -
Viking Glazed 'Resurrection Egg'
Circa 9th-10th century A.D.Sold for (Inc. bp): £910
A glazed hollow ceramic egg with a hole to the underside and a smaller pellet inside; regular, dragged yellow lines to the outer face. 30.4 grams, 41 mm
From the private collection of a London gentleman, from his grandfather's collection formed before the early 1970s.
These eggs are usually assigned to Kievan Rus workmanship, but in fact, they were found in a wider geographical area. They are thought to represent an early form of a popular Orthodox tradition of painted eggs, or 'pysanka', popular during the Easter holiday as a symbol of resurrection. However, the symbolism may be pre-Christian, with a connection to an idea of a Cosmic Egg, from which the world was created.
